Lateral Thinking – Do you know how to think? And does it if you don't?

Award winning novelist and journalist Sarah Tucker, finds out how lateral thinking not only helps you find solutions, it also triggers a stronger sense of style.

Researching the life and work of Rhodes Scholar, business icon and Nobel Prize Nominee, Edward de Bono, the person who invented the concept of lateral thinking, I realised I (sort of) do know how to think. (Although when I asked him if I did, know how to think, he replied unequivocally, ‘no, Sarah, you do a little bit. Then noticing I look a little dejected, he added ‘you pretend to think but you do it very well.

Lateral thinking or ‘thinking out of the box’ as its sometimes called, isn’t just creative thinking – it is a neurological technique to consciously change the patterning system within the self-organising patterning system of the brain. That’s a mouthful – so de Bono invented a word (as he often did) to simplify the process. He labelled this neurological technique – ‘lateral thinking’. He advocated collaboration and connection, recommended developing portfolio careers before portfolio careers became labelled as such and identified why polymaths are more efficient at problem solving than specialists who have spent their life in one role or profession. He identified the need to distinguish between fluency of style and integrity of thinking – something we need to do in order to identify why politicians and many of those at the top of their respective industries, are naked emperors.

The problem is not only does our language encourage us to ‘follow’ (think about what you are saying about yourself every time you tick the box ‘follower’ on social media) but so does our brain – even if its off a cliff or not good for us. We fail to evolve and focus on blame, attack and ideology. That’s why he suggested more engineers in politics – they focus on finding solutions and fixing things. They are not ‘performers’.

For half a century de Bono travelled the world and became a global icon before wifi made becoming a global icon easy. He spent more time on British Airways Flights than any other passenger in the 1960s delivering key note speeches to multi-nationals, business leaders, politicians, schools, universities and often held male only suppers at his set in London at the Albany opposite the prestigious London store Fortnum and Mason , amongst the good and great (Princes, Prime Ministers, media moguls) observing how ego got in the way of identifying solutions. He observed the larger the ego, the more limited the ability to learn how to think.

De Bono recognised ego is a huge trap to hinder thinking – he published I am Right You are Wrong (Penguin) in 1990, which outlined why politicians are weak thinkers, and journalists – or rather their editors and publishers – are interested only in gimmick, attack and human angle.

Trauma – death, divorce, 9/11, covid, Trump – tends to trigger pattern changing – which is good in the brain, but not for the heart – and so he devised a range of thinking tools and techniques to trigger the change – to focus people on finding solutions, not blaming, to consider the views of others while not letting go of what you want and need out of a situation, and for rediscovering the value of being playfully provocative with your thinking.

He believed words limit our ability in learning how to think – and that pictures/photos express words yet to be invented. He invented words like operacy – ideas into action, and rock and water logic for illustrating how people stop thinking when they believe they are right (the ego trap) or self-righteous (the intelligence trap).

The most celebrated of his thinking tools was the Six Thinking Hats, which is to be used either by yourself or with a group of people who need to find a solution, and some are louder, more dominant or more negative than others. It literally puts you in the shoes of others.

Blue Hat Thinking – everyone focuses on the structure of what is needed. What is the aim? What does good look like? The time that will be taken to find the solution. Ground rules, everyone gets a say for equal amount of time.
Stops the bullies and narcissists from dominating the conversation.

White Hat Thinking – what do you know as facts and what don’t you know. The second is more important than the first. Often the issues arise because individuals and companies don’t know what they don’t know – and need to know. Taking time to identify what you don’t know saves time and sharpens focus.
Stops wafflers, and people who go off topic and waste time.

Red hat thinking – get angry, get passionate. Say how you feel about the issue – don’t validate it. Just say it. Get it out there. Emotions manipulate our thinking process – even more so when we don’t voice them. Don’t validate – just speak up and out.
Stops the narcissists and bullies and their strategic use of coercive abuse – who suggest you do not have a right to feel what you are feeling.

Yellow Hat Thinking – what does good look like – really good look like. What is the most desirable outcome. Here you find out if everyone has a different view of ‘what good looks like’. Everyone must speak.
It becomes clear if some people are interested in their own needs at the cost of everyone else or even themselves, and also if they don’t know ‘what good looks like’.

Green Hat Thinking – any ideas put forward for finding solutions. No editing. No ‘buts and ifs’ just focus on anything is possible, anything is probable. In vigorous research conducted years back, de Bono conducted an experiment with a drawing of a wheelbarrow and asked groups – engineers, politicians, teachers, accountants, five-year-olds, to come up with the most ideas for how a badly drawn wheelbarrow could be used. The most productive, useable and prolific group were the five-year-olds. As Sir Ken Robinson states in his 2006 TedTalk – education kills creativity. www.nudgestock.com